Stephen Ondra ’80 gave the 2019 commencement address and received an honorary degree from the university for his successes.
Here is a link to recent article about Mr. Ondra’s career. https://www.wglt.org/post/former-obama-health-care-advisor-give-illinois-wesleyan-commencement-speech#stream/0
You did it, Titans! You were the key to our success. On April 11, 2,205 donors collectively raised $518,316. And thanks to the generosity of our pacesetter challenge donors, our grand total is $776,316 (and still counting!)
This video captures a few successes from #AllInforWesleyan. Check out the social media activity and revisit iwu.edu/all-in to see how your gifts made a difference.
Thank you for your support!
Demetria Kalodimos ’81 visited Lipscomb University to speak to communication students about her experiences working in broadcast news and her perspectives on the journalism industry. Here is the article published about her interview at Lipscomb.
Lou Bury ’80 is the associate pastor of Downers Grove Community Church and they are using music in its “Building Bridges Series” to link its congregation with worshipers from different ethnic backgrounds. Here is the article where he describes the mission of the “Building Bridges Series” and what other ethnic backgrounds have been incorporated into the congregation.
Check out the All In Happy Hours taking place around the country. Show your Titan pride by spreading the word about All In for Wesleyan to your personal networks via social media, calls, texts, emails, etc.
You’ll have a great time while encouraging others to make an additional gift on All In and share stories about how IWU Unlocked Opportunities for each of us. Visit our webpage for more information and registration.
Carl Teichman ’80 was named “Federation 2018 Advocate of the Year” by the Federation of Independent Illinois Colleges and Universities. You can read more about it here.
Julie Dunbar ’80 received the Zephyr Foundation’s Outstanding Industry Contributor Award. The Zephyr Foundation’s mission is to advance rigorous transportation and land use decision-making for the public good by advocating for and supporting improved travel analysis and facilitating its implementation.This award is given to ‘an individual who in embodying the Zephyr Principles, has selflessly contributed to the good of the industry through the body of their work. The Outstanding Industry Contributor shall be:
Congratulations Julie!
Michael Tipsord ’81 has been named to Governor-elect JB Prtizker’s Job Creation and Economic Opportunity Committee. More can be found here about Michaels’ accomplishments.
On what kind of singer she wants for the Tanglewood Program: “We look at the voice, and the quality, the talent in communication. We are also looking for students we think we can help guide—someone who’s open to working collaboratively. That’s what it’s all about. The singers in the program tend to be people who have just finished grad school. It’s a small enough group, and we get enough applicants, that we really are able to stick to a certain level of artist. That’s the level I was most interested in at Bard, too. I actually began at Bard in 2004, before I took the position at Tanglewood. When Bard first approached me, they were creating an undergraduate conservatory, and I said I didn’t want to create an undergraduate vocal program. I was more interested in the openness and the skill level of graduate-level students.
“Our program at Bard is centered on the core seminar classes. There are four semesters in a two-year program, so there are four core seminars. The course I love the most is called ‘Creating Unique Performance Opportunities.’ The students are put into two groups of three or four, and they do everything—they choose their program, they rehearse, they do the research, they do their program notes, they find the venue, they book the concert and do all the publicity. It has to be off-campus, and in the community around Bard. All of this is done by Thanksgiving. So it’s a very quick turnaround, very intense class, but it shows them that they can create their own performance opportunities. The impetus for that class comes from me believing things are constantly evolving in the business, and in the work. I truly believe that the most exciting thing about the future in music is the new young musicians that are coming along and saying they want to do this. They find a way to say what they want to say with their music. And so they need a place they can create for themselves in which to say what they want to say with their work.
“Our goal at Bard is to instill in the students excitement for collaboration and connecting with other people through the art form. It can be a lonely road, sometimes, being a singing artist. But I have found in my own experience that the greatest work that I can do has always been in collaboration with someone else”
